Short answers, pulled from the story.
Murshidabad became the capital of Bengal in the 1660s when Murshid Quli Khan shifted the capital from Dhaka to his newly founded city. The town evolved into a pargana under Mughal administration during this period, granting it jurisdiction over European companies operating in Cossimbazar.
The merchant Makhsus Khan laid the initial groundwork for the development of Murshidabad in the early 1600s. The city was later transformed into a political powerhouse by Murshid Quli Khan, who established a dynasty within the Mughal aristocracy and named the city after himself.
The city suffered a severe decline after the defeat of the last independent Nawab, Siraj-ud-Daulah, at the Battle of Plassey in 1757. The British shifted the treasury, courts, and revenue offices to Calcutta, reducing the Nawab to the status of a zamindar or landlord known as the Nawab of Murshidabad.
The population of Murshidabad was 44,019 as recorded in the 2011 Indian Census. The city has a literacy rate of 73.7 percent and features a diverse religious makeup of Hindus, Muslims, and others.
Murshidabad was declared a municipality in 1869, marking its transition from a princely capital to a colonial district city. This declaration occurred during the 19th century when the city had lost its status as the capital of Bengal but remained a district headquarters of the Bengal Presidency.